Secrets
by grace-kellyy
Summary: Some secrets are better left unsaid, better left unknown. So when a new girl enters Gallagher Academy, everyone is up to their knees in trying to find out who she is, where she came from. But wait—who is this mysterious guy who seems to appear everywhere? What difference will he make in Effie Brooks' life?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: So we have a new kid?

* * *

None of them were expecting this. Well—of course they were, it was September, after all. New kids were definitely to be expected. But to have a new kid flaunted by _twelve_ limousines? It was definitely something; even by Gallagher Girl standards.

And thus, Cammie's ranting about how Zach didn't seem pretty into her anymore was disturbed by the commotion going on—everyone seemed too excited to see just _who_ was that girl by the _twelve limousines._ And yes, the author had to italicize that, because it was that unbelievable.

"Shh, you guys!" Bex yelled. "I wanna know who the hell that is!" She then gave Cammie an apologetic look. "Sorry, honey. It's just that this is probably more important than your boy problems."

Cammie sighed. "It's alright, I mean, even if I do like Zach, I saw this guy, and... I know I'm not supposed to believe in love at first sight, but—"

"You met a guy?" Macey hissed. "I'll grill you about that later, but now, I think it's time for us to meet the newbie." Liz just nodded in agreement, still calculating how many people would fit twelve limousines, and just what were the characteristics of this girl that the said limousines happened to flaunt.

And so, the four roommates, slash best friends, slash Gallagher Girls, went off to meet the newbie.

* * *

The girl was nothing like they expected. The four of them actually expected them to be like Macey was on her first day here, wearing combat boots and all that other jazz, but the new girl was definitely not like that.

The new girl was absolutely breathtaking. She had dark brown, almost black hair, long and straight, with calculating chocolate brown eyes, a gentle smile, and posture even a princess would kill for. She had the grace and the physique of a ballerina, and it would be an understatement to say that all the girls in Gallagher were jealous of her.

"Welcome to Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, Miss Brooks." Cammie's mother, and also the headmistress, Ms. Morgan, said. "I earnestly hope that you enjoy here."

The new girl, Miss Brooks, apparently, smiled. "Thank you," she said, her voice calm and composed, "I'm sure I will."

It was at this exact moment, that Mr. Solomon, a.k.a the hottest thing that has probably ever walked the face of the earth, decided to make his entrance. "Welcome, Miss Brooks, I am Joe Solomon, and I'll be one of your teachers here."

"Ladies," Ms. Morgan turned to the Gallagher girls watching the scene unfold, "This is Effie Brooks. She is a junior, and it is only fitting for us to make her feel like she is welcome in this institution."

"I would also like to inform you," she continued, "that we will be having _visitors_ for a few hours, but there is no need to worry, seeing as you will probably not be encountering them in the halls. Enjoy your day." The crowd dispersed and fell back into their usual schedule, only this time

"I don't like the way she stressed the word 'visitors'", Liz commented. "It seems as though there's something not normal about these so-called visitors we're having."

"Liz, with the world we're in, do you think there is such a thing as, 'normal'?" Bex raised an eyebrow. The blonde girl only shrugged. Someone tapped Cammie on the shoulder, and they were all in shock when they saw that the new girl—Effie—standing there, a confused look on her face.

"Uh, hey," she started awkwardly. "I'm Effie, and, um, are you Rebecca, Elizabeth, Cameron, and Macey? It would be absolutely awkward if you weren't, but yeah." She ended with a sheepish smile.

"Oh no, no." Macey laughed, throwing an arm around Effie's shoulders. "We are definitely those people, but call us Bex, Liz, Cammie, and Macey."

"If you don't, we might have to kill you." Cammie joked, but after seeing the look on the girl's face, immediately took it back. "Not like that, I was joking!"

Effie laughed. "I know you were. It's no biggie."

"Oh, for a second there, I thought you were scared."

"I'm scared of lots of things, but I do know how to take a joke." she said.

"Wait," Liz started, "what made you look for us?"

"Ms. Morgan said that you girls were my new roommates?" Effie bit her lip.

"Oh yeah!" Bex said, realization dawning on her. "We have an extra bed!"

"Well, I'm glad! We love you already." Macey winked.

"Aw, thanks girls." Effie smiled.

She was starting to love the school already.

* * *

But when she was left alone, in the bathroom the next morning, while everyone was getting breakfast, Effie Brooks frowned at the reflection in the mirror.

"You weren't good enough," she spat at the girl in the mirror. "You weren't good enough, and that's why you're here. You are a disgrace to the family name. You endangered your family's life, and you dragged your brother along with you. How are you supposed to rule a country if you can't even keep things in your own home under control? You worthless, ungrateful _bitch._"

One by one, tears fell down her face, tears of disappointment and anger.

They always told her she was an amazing actress.

That she could fool almost anyone.

But then, as she wiped away her tears and slipped a smile on her face, she knew that she could deceive even herself.

* * *

Everyone watched as the new girl sat with her new friends.

"Is everyone always like this?" Effie whispered uneasily, not used to the many eyes following her every move.

"You'll get used to it," Macey said, chewing her food. "I speak from experience."

Of course, the daughter of a politician would always speak from experience.

"Ladies!" came the loud booming voice of the headmistress, with the rest of the faculty trailing behind her. "The visitors are arriving here today, so if any of you bump into someone in the halls, I advise you to keep quiet and keep moving forward, is that understood?"

Affirmatives were heard across the room, and before they knew it, it was time for class.

* * *

"I always have to get lost, don't I?" Effie muttered exasperatedly. She was never good with directions.

"Looking for Sublevel Two?" A husky voice said, and she looked around, only to see a guy about her age leaning on the walls, hands casually tucked into his pocket. He was tall, mysterious, and undeniably handsome, or hot, or both. Probably both. With dark hair, emerald green eyes, and a visibly muscular body, who wouldn't be hot? Right?

"Um, yeah..." Effie trailed off, eyebrow cocked. "Do you know where it is?" The unnamed boy took her hand and led her to some sort of elevator.

"Take the elevator down there, take some blood tests, and you're good to go." He said with a smirk, the kind of smirk that says 'I-know-something-you-don't'.

"Thanks," she smiled at him. His smirk was still in place as he replied.

"No problem."

Effie turned around to look at him once again as she entered the elevator, but when she did, he was gone.

And she was left with her thoughts about the mysterious hot guy she had just encountered.

* * *

**So that is the first chapter! Hehe. I do hope one of you liked it, I hope to see a review!**

**Effie is a person I just pulled off the top of my head, and I planned out a good story for her and for everyone. I put lots of clues as to who she is, so I hope you guys get it!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: So... he's my 'protector'?

* * *

**I don't belong here. **I belong somewhere else. I'm sure as hell that I'm not qualified to be a spy—I mean, that's what the whole school is for, right? This is a school for spies, where the elite and exceptional harness their skills and live by the motto of Gillian Gallagher. But that's not me. That's not who I'm supposed to be. I'm starting to think they only brought me here for protection.

Plus, there's also the fact that my thoughts always keep returning to this really hot guy I met a few hours ago.

I mean, I don't see a reason why they wouldn't. His eyes, his face, everything about him was just so..._ him_. Nobody could ever duplicate the way his eyes shone mischievously, yet there was a calculating edge to it, like he was examining your every move. Nobody could ever duplicate the way his lips turned into a cocky smirk. And I seriously don't think anybody would be able to pull off a v-neck, jeans, and sneakers the way he did.

"Effie! Earth to Effie! Is everything alright?" Macey was waving her hand across my face, and just like that, I returned to earth.

"Yeah?" I said, trying as hard as I could to not make it seem like I was thinking about a guy who gave me directions to Sublevel Two.

"You looked a bit... out of it. Is everything alright?"

"Of course!" I answered, a bit too quickly. "I mean, everything's just fine, thank you."

Silence.

It was good manners to say thank you, right?

Then my four new friends broke out into laughter.

"You were thinking about a guy, weren't you?" Bex teased.

Alright acting skills, I thought, don't fail me now. "Why would I be thinking of a guy in an all girls' school, where there are no guys at all?"

Cammie seemed to ponder about this for a moment. "She has a point."

"Thank you!" I muttered, a bit exasperatedly.

Just then, Mr. Solomon, who I've come to terms with is my teacher, approached us.

"Ladies, all of you, except Effie, are needed in the headmistress' office." he said. Cammie, Bex, Liz, and Macey looked terrified, as terrified as a spy could muster.

"I wonder what this is about..." I heard Cammie mutter as they walked away. With a polite smile to Mr. Solomon, I went my own way as well.

* * *

I thought about what happened in P&E, how I was able to counterstrike one of Bex's maneuvers (I'm honestly not sure with the names... like I said, I'm not a spy) using moves I learned in ballet. It was surreal, how lithe and flexible she was, and how I, of all people, was able to parry and dodge a swift kick that was meant for my head. I wasn't the most coordinated person ever, but I knew that balance, timing, and hand-eye coordination was one of the keys to be able to dodge that blow. I must have been really deep in thought, because I found myself near a staircase when I heard a voice say:

"I would watch where I'm going if I were you, Princess."

I spun around and saw the subject of my previous thoughts—the guy I had encountered, leaning on the wall, hands in his pockets.

"Why do you always seem to appear at the most convenient moments?" I asked, placing my hands on my hips, walking towards him.

"Probably because you attract a lot of trouble," he replied in that husky voice of his. I cocked an eyebrow at him.

"And what do the things I attract have to do with you mysteriously appearing and disappearing?"

"It's only natural for a prince to save a damsel-in-distress, isn't it?" he shrugged, that smirk on his face widening just a tiny bit.

As much as I was inwardly flustered, I had to make it seem like I could keep up. I had to make it seem like I was cool enough for him to talk to. I pretended to almost laugh. "So, does this mean you're my prince?"

He moved closer, until he was close._ Very_ close. "I could be the prince, I could be the pauper. Who knows?"

"I'm Effie," I said, thrusting my hand out for him to shake. He took it, but instead of shaking it, he brought it up to his lips and kissed it, yet his eyes never left mine.

After he kissed my hand, he gently placed it back where it previously was, which was on my side. In the process of doing so, he moved closer to me and bent down so he could whisper something in my ear.

"I'm Zach. Zach Goode."

And just like that, he was already walking away.

"Wait!" I called out._ Zach_ stopped. "Will I see you again?"

He turned around and looked at me, his signature smirk on his lips. "It depends. We'll see how much trouble you attract." Then he was gone.

"I'm gonna have to attract a lot more trouble then," I whispered, staring into the distance, before heading back to the dorms.

* * *

**Yay for Chapter 2! Hehe. This is more of a filler one though, to establish a 'proper' meeting of Zach and Effie.**

**Review!**


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